Crackdown on critics sparks fear of dictatorship under William Ruto regime

Remarks and actions by top government officials condemning last Wednesday’s protests and threatening consequences that could further suppress dissent have raised concerns that Kenya may be sliding into dictatorship.

The signs, observers warn, are all too glaring. These include the State’s refusal to allow peaceful protests, attacks on the media, and the withdrawal of security for former senior officials.

There is also a sustained attempt to weaken independent institutions such as the Judiciary, to mirror Parliament, which has largely acted as an appendage of the Executive since President William Ruto and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga joined hands last July.

On Friday, former Chief Justice David Maraga protested the withdrawal of his security detail guaranteed to him by his former position following his participation in the recent protests.

“I have enjoyed the services of the officers attached to my office for almost five years uninterrupted. It is curious that they were suddenly recalled after my public criticism of the police leadership and my participation in the Nairobi CBD march on Wednesday,” Maraga wrote in a letter to Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen and Inspector General of Police Douglas Kanja.

Embakasi East MP Babu Owino also had his security withdrawn for participating in the procession.

Such acts highlight the paranoia with which Ruto’s administration has handled anti-government demonstrations, ‘outlawing’ all that have been staged since he ascended to office, contradicting his campaign promise to uphold constitutional principles.

Attempts at protesting have been met with a heavy-handed crackdown by the National Police Service. This was apparent during the most recent demos, where police used live and rubber bullets, tear gas, batons, and water cannons on initially peaceful protesters, provoking violent reactions from demonstrators.

Records from the Kenya National Human Rights Commission show that  19 people were killed last Wednesday — a gruesome statistic that exposes the level of brutality that met this wave of protest.

By comparison, more than 60 people were killed in last year’s youth-led uprising that lasted a few weeks, and at least 70, according to the opposition, during Raila-led protests in 2023.

Amid it all, the government has openly approved the police’s brutal actions, effectively shielding them from accountability for acts that in some cases blatantly violate the law.

Murkomen’s illegal shoot-on-sight order targeting “those who go to police stations” exposed the lengths the government is willing to go to crush dissent.

Article 245 of the Constitution prohibits the Cabinet Secretary or anyone else from issuing operational directives to the Inspector General (IG) of Police, limiting the Interior CS’s influence to policy matters only.

Murkomen later retracted his statement, admitting he cannot “order the IG” on anything. But his words betrayed a deeper truth: that the police service still takes instructions from the Executive, contradicting the President’s pledge to respect its independence.

Critics have decried the government’s overreaction as an infringement on the right to peaceful assembly, which is guaranteed under the Constitution’s Bill of Rights.

“Dictatorship is about this intolerance, insensitivity, and unresponsiveness to public opinion,” said Suba Churchill, executive director of the Kenya National Civil Society Centre.

“Kenyans want a government that is accountable, transparent, and responsive to the people.”

Last Tuesday, Western envoys urged the facilitation of peaceful protests, stating that protecting this right was “vital to preserving civic space and a cornerstone of Kenya’s vibrant democracy.”

Government officials, however, spoke strongly against the protests, with Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki vowing to prevent any repeat of Wednesday’s demos “whatever it takes.”

President Ruto’s words during last year’s demonstrations that saw Parliament breached marked the beginning of a wave of abductions targeting government critics—a practice that continues to this day and is more commonly seen in autocratic states.

This past week, Murkomen went so far as to describe the protests as “terrorism disguised as dissent,” a sentiment Ruto echoed on Friday, claiming the demos would plunge Kenya into anarchy.

“No one in this country can suspend the Constitution, not the people, State agencies, or demonstrators,” said Makueni Senator Dan Maanzo, criticising the government’s continued stifling of protests.

“The people can amend or create a new Constitution, but no one, not even the President, can suspend it.”

These signs of creeping autocracy also extend to press freedom. On Wednesday, the Communication Authority of Kenya unilaterally took down the signals of KTN, NTV, and K24 for broadcasting the protests live, an act widely seen as an attempt at intimidation.

Murkomen, justifying the media blackout, launched a personal attack on the Standard Group for its bold reporting.

“The Standard has stopped being a newspaper. Its headlines for the last two months have always been about security and insulting people,” he said, lamenting that the media was simply reporting facts—an implication that the State seeks to control the narrative.

This was part of a broader assault that included ODM politicians, led by National Assembly Minority Leader Junet Mohamed, who made reckless remarks against the Standard Group.

“This is a media that is hell-bent on creating genocide in this country,” said Junet—a statement that The Standard condemned as intimidation in an editorial.

“The remarks, delivered in the chambers of Parliament, carry the weight of State-sanctioned intimidation. They send a chilling message to journalists across the country,” the editorial read.

Since the handshake last July, many ODM lawmakers have pledged loyalty to Ruto, weakening Parliament’s oversight role.

During the 2022 campaigns, Ruto had presented himself as a champion of dissent and criticised former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s alliance with Raila.

But recent developments suggest a plan by the President to consolidate as much power as possible, seeking to render his office virtually untouchable.

The Judiciary has come under intense pressure, with multiple petitions filed to remove all Supreme Court judges currently pending in court. Chief Justice Martha Koome’s office has also faced budget cut threats, particularly following court rulings that went against government policies.

“There are signs of dictatorship from the government. It doesn’t want to listen to the people. It doesn’t want to accept their ideas. It wants to force its way,” said Senator Dan Maanzo, pointing to the Ruto administration’s continued efforts to weaken the Judiciary.